Session 4
Cultists in the Sewers! Fenric, Freddy, Makani, Pebbles and Pep continues their search in the sewers, determined to find out the root cause of the rumors going on above within the city. Heroes Journal Entries Fenric Freddy Dear Mom and Dad, After a few days of rest, we (Makani, the handsy halfling, the firbolg, the crunch gnome, and me) decided to return to the sewers to clear out undead from the rest of it! Makani somehow knew a dwarf, named Fulcrum that had renovated the whole storm drain system a couple of years ago, so that was a lucky find! He guided us down there, and I learned a lot about the history and construction of those underground tunnels... well, I would have learned if I paid attention. Anyway, Makani and a few of her friends had explored a different part of the sewers, so we decided to pick up where they left off to see if we could get the rest of it cleared. Well, you'll never guess what we discovered. It was crazy! I shouldn't say too much here, but I think we may have uncovered a cult of Bane! During our exploration, we came across a magic sigil of Bane that seemed to draw undead to it. Thank goodness our firbolg friend (Fen is his name) could detect magic, otherwise we would never have seen it! Well, that's not entirely true. Makani can perform the ritual to detect magic, as well (which she did later), but at that time, she was holding out on us. So, we destroyed the skeletons that had gathered on the sigil, but the gnome (Pep) foolishly rushed forward and got himself knocked unconscious. I thought he was a goner, actually... one of the arrows a skeleton shot seemed to pierce him through the heart! Thankfully, Fen was able to call upon Tempus to heal Pep, because Pep was able to destroy Bane's sigil! We're starting to really work together! We continued further into the sewers, where we came upon more evidence of Bane's cult and more undead. The shifty halfling (Pebbles) scouted a little head and got bonked on the noggin for her efforts. We later encountered a very scary ghost-like creature that knocked Fen down in a single hit. I was even more worried for him than for Pep, earlier! He seemed doomed, but then, miraculously, seemed to shrug off the effects. Tempus must really favor him. We were lucky to defeat that wraith. It seems like it was guarding some shipments of items and arms. I'm not familiar with the area, but Makani told us that these items bore the crests of Omnians, who occupied this city before the natives took it back. Things are getting curiouser and curiouser. Further on, we came upon a room with a large ceremonial circle in it, along with a human sacrifice! In this room was another undead monster! We were very lucky that Fen's connection with Tempus was still strong, as he called forth a bolt of divine energy that basically disintegrated the foul beast. By this time, my blood was boiling at the undead presence and the human sacrifice... but I kept it cool. It was not the time to let my anger get the best of me. Unfortunately, it seems like the human sacrifice was close to a friend of makani's. It might have even been her husband. We brought the body out and gave it to one of the temples for proper last rites to be performed. This town seems to be barely keeping itself together. It's a pot about to boil over. I'm glad I can be here to help and I will in any way I can. Makani mentioned that there may even be a fiendish threat that needs to be investigated. Serafina is definitely pointing me in that direction, but I believe that there may also be some tie between one of the merchant princes and Bane that we need to root out. Uncovering and exposing the cult of Bane would be equally as fulfilling as banishing demons from the face of the realms. There is much to do here. I feel like there was a reason for me to drawn here. I will stay as safe as I can, but should I fall, know that I am where I must be. Freddy Makani I met up with my friends at Wakanga's and got them up to speed on the sewer situation. I had called for Fulcrum to meet up with us, knowing my friends would want to go back to the sewers. We asked Fulcrum to take us back down starting at the bathhouse and going along the perimeter in the south back to the intersection we had encountered twice before. Our survey was uneventful except for Fulcrum's gruff guidance on who owns what above. When we arrived at our familiar platform, we spied 4 skeletons! We had just killed some the day before. Are they regenerating? They took aim at us first! For some reason, Pep jumped down into the water and conjured faerie fire on them. The skellies fired back and knocked him prone! Incensed, I incanted the spell catapult from my bag of spells. I lugged my crowbar at one of the four skeletons and he took a major blow! Pebbles and Fulcrum advanced to the platform to continue fighting while Freddy and I threw cantrips from a distance. Fen uttered healing word to revive Pep, who immediately cast an illusion of a rock to hide behind. After we defeated the skellies, Fen inspected the platform and observed the marking of Bane on it. Bane is the God of fear, evil, and tyranny! My skin crawled at the thought of such evil below my beloved city. We decided to go north towards the merchant prince quarters. Perhaps Bane was not only responsible for the undead but the demons too! Just under the Grand Sook Market, Fen sighted the marking of Bane on a wall. Fulcrum confirmed the walls were false and hastily made, not the work of fine dwarven craftsmen. Pebbles and Freddy figured out how to open the door, which led to modest living quarters for 6-8 people. We found a scrap of paper in a brazier that read: "The darkness of Chult lies in the jungles. They see but do not see. It threatens our influence and rule. We must understand..." Meanwhile, Pebbles and Fulcrum opened the wooden door in this room and proceeded down a short hall. Pebbles stepped on a trap and a flail swung down and hit her squarely in the eye! She forged on and found a room that had partially fallen in from above. Four crates from Amn were scattered about and standing in the midst of it was a spectre! After killing it, we took a closer look at the crates and discovered arms and heraldry. Is Jobal behind the cultists?!?! We proceeded beyond this room and found a dead man lying in the center of a ritual drawn on the floor. Another evil undead creature was here in the room! Fen rushed forward and swung his warhammer on it; it reached out and started to drain his vital energy. We started throwing spells at it while Pep revived Fen. Force and fire damage didn't seem to do much. To exact revenge, Fen called on his god, Tempus, to guide a bolt of radiant energy from the heavens at this undead monstrosity! The blast was effective and the ghoul disappeared. (No head to collect. It didn't smell like rotten eggs anyhow!) We examined the dead man and I gasped when I saw he wore the sigil of Lady Annabelle's family. Could this be her husband that's been missing?!?! We found ceremonial instruments like a bowl for collecting blood and robes in the name of Bane. Poor soul. He had been dead for a few days. We are taking his body back to the Temple of Severus to determine what happened. I am troubled and sad at the same time. Lady Annabelle will be devastated and I am paranoid on who to trust among the Merchant Princes now! We've got to find out who owns the building or store above this place! * Makani Pebbles Yo Pockets! I'm seeing my stay in this city a bit longer as there is more treasure for me to find and I do think this old turtle will lead me to my first item - the purple turtle shell. We returned to the sewers by way of a bathhouse - a place I spend my free time. Don't judge. I find this group of explorers quite comical, yet endearing. This guy, Pep. He's an impulsive one. We came across four skeletons with bows. He jumps ahead of all of us with his dog and takes on a storm of arrows. Freddie and Makani are testing out their spells and learning what works and what doesn't. Fen, the tall one, is learning his ropes and is proving to be an asset - a piece of furniture that I can climb and attack from above should the need arise. After more exploration, we came across magical symbols that seem to conjure evil creatures. We were able to destroy a couple of them before coming across a hidden barracks room. Of course, I took on a trap (or two) to protect my party. I still have a headache. Once inside the barracks, I picked a couple locks - quite simple actually and the others were amazed at my abilities. We eventually came across some ritual site where we found valuable items and the body of a handsome man lying on the floor face up. My first thought was to mount him, though my second was that I would be mounting a dead body. And yeah. He was dead alright. Makani recognized him as being the husband of one of the other party members. My third thought was that I would have still mounted him (if he was alive). Pep